Metroland at the Metrocentre was a huge favourite with Tyneside families who flocked there for two decades.
Our main image shows work starting on the indoor funfair 35 years ago in October 1987. It was the latest development at the Gateshead shopping complex, the biggest in Europe, which had opened in two phases, the Red and Green Malls, the previous year.
The centre - the brainchild of John Hall, later to be Sir John, and his Cameron Hall company - would become “the biggest shopping and leisure complex in Europe” it was reported, providing a huge boost for an ailing region where traditional industries were dying and unemployment was rocketing. Around 6,000 jobs were expected to be created.
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In 1987, phases three and four would see the new Blue and Yellow Malls open, as well as a bus station, multi-storey car park, railway stop and UCI cinema with 10 screens. The new 600-seat Clockworks food court offered plenty of choice for those who wanted a bite to eat, while the new Toys R Us store was said to be "the biggest toy warehouse in the world".
Exciting plans for a £20m fun park were also revealed. The Metrocentre announced in October 1987: "Set in a 67,000 square foot area, you will soon be able to escape in our fabulous fantasy, Metroland. Roundabouts, coconut shies, Wurlitzers, fun and games - and no one should miss the big wheel. Metroland will be open all year round and all under cover."
In the event, the fun park would open in February 1988. Construction and fitting out work cost around £20m. Initial rides included Flying Galleon, Wiz's Whirly Chairs, Voltswagons, Galaxy Express, Mad Motorway, Moat Boats, Metroland Express- and more. Tokens cost 50p for two rides, or you could buy an all-day pass for £3.50.
There was also a nine-hole golf course called Joker's Green, and a soft play area called Wizard's Castle. The park had four food outlets and the Jester's Games Gallery which hosted the latest arcade games. Countless thousands of Tyneside children would enjoy special birthday parties there, attended to by the centre’s very own Metro Gnomes.
Metroland became a perennial favourite. In 2005, for example, the park welcomed 1.2m paying visitors through its doors, up 1% on the year before. But change was in the air. In July 2007, despite objections, councillors gave the go-ahead for the fairground area to be converted to a cinema, a move which was approved by the Government Office North East.
After 20 years, the park finally closed on Sunday, April 20, 2008. To mark the occasion, the park held a ‘last ride weekend’ where visitors were charged £5 for the whole day and had unlimited access to all the rides. It was the end of an era for a generation of Tyneside youngsters.
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